World News - More Than 700 Become Sick on Trans-Atlantic Carnival Cruise

More than 700 passengers and crew members aboard a trans-Atlantic cruise have fallen ill with flu-like symptoms, cruise line officials said.The outbreak, believed to be norovirus, struck people aboard the Carnival Cruise Lines' Liberty, one of the world's largest cruise ships, according to a statement issued Wednesday by the Miami-based company.The ship left Rome on Nov. 3 with about 2,800 paying passengers and was due to arrive in Fort Lauderdale on Sunday."Within 24 hours of sailing, they had a lot of people sick. It has tapered off considerably over the past couple days," said David Forney, with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta.... http://www.foxnews.com

A US marine has received an 18-month prison sentence for his part in killing an unarmed man in Iraq. Pte John Jodka is one of eight servicemen implicated in the attack seven months ago in Hamdania, in which a 52-year-old man died. The judge said he would have sentenced Jodka to five years, but he was bound by a "very fortuitous" pre-trial deal. Jodka, who apologised to the victim's family, is expected to give evidence against the other defendants. As part of a plea bargain, Jodka pleaded guilty in October to charges of assault and conspiracy to obstruct justice, while prosecutors dropped other charges including murder and kidnapping. The BBC's David Willis, in California, says other more senior officers among the defendants are expected to face kidnapping and murder charges. They could face the death penalty if convicted in trials that are likely to drag on towards the end of 2007, our correspondent says....http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/6152636.stm

A man was arrested at Detroit Metropolitan Airport after officials say they found him carrying more than $78,000 in cash and a laptop computer containing information about nuclear materials and cyanide. Sisayehiticha Dinssa, an unemployed U.S. citizen, was arrested Tuesday after a dog caught the scent of narcotics on cash he was carrying, according to an affidavit filed in court. When agents asked him if he had any cash to declare, he said he had $18,000, authorities said. But when agents checked his luggage, they found an additional $59,000. When they scrolled through his laptop, they said they found the mysterious files. At a court hearing Wednesday, Dinssa was ordered held in custody until at least until Monday at the request of prosecutors. Assistant U.S. Attorney Leonid Feller argued Dinssa was a potential risk to the community and federal agents want to get a warrant to search his computer more thoroughly, The ...http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2006-11-16-airport-nuclear_x.htm?csp=34

More than 1,000 white farmers have been told to collect compensation for property seized during Zimbabwe's controversial land-reform programme. The country's land ministry said dispossessed white farmers should contact the government urgently. The invitation for compensation was carried in a four-page notice in the government-run Herald newspaper. Zimbabwe's land reforms saw thousands of white-owned farms seized and redistributed to landless blacks. Secretary of lands Ngoni Masoka urged former farm owners or representatives to "contact the Ministry of Lands, Land Reform and Resettlement as a matter of urgency in connection with their compensation". President Robert Mugabe launched Zimbabwe's controversial land-reform programme seven years ago, with the aim of readdressing economic imbalances left over from the country's years of British colonial rule. ...http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/6153616.stm

NATO forces shot dead two civilians whose vehicle was speeding toward their patrol, while NATO and Afghan troops killed three Taliban fighters in southern Afghanistan, officials said Thursday.In Kabul province, which includes the capital, Kabul, Afghan and coalition forces on Thursday fatally shot one man and captured four others for "their involvement in terrorist activity," said a statement from the U.S.-led coalition."Credible information indicates the terrorists were responsible for attacks against Afghan and coalition forces," the statement said. It did not identify the men captured or killed or give any further details. Two civilians were killed and a child wounded Wednesday when NATO forces fired at a speeding van approaching their patrol that "failed to stop when hand signals were given," a statement from NATO's International Security Assistance Force said....http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,229909,00.html

Bush pressed familiar points in Asia today on trade and anti-terror policies, but Democrats are making it clear the political environment has changed back home.Bush told an audience in Singapore that the United States wants to expand trade in Asia and work to restrict the potential spread of nuclear weapons, particularly from North Korea."We must seize on our common opportunities," Bush said today at the National University of Singapore. "We must be willing to confront our common threats."Bush is expected to take a similar message to an Asian economic conference this weekend in Vietnam.In the meantime, Democrats preparing to take charge of Congress next year are challenging Bush over his approaches to free trade and North Korea, as well as the ongoing war in Iraq....http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2006-11-16-bush-asia_x.htm?csp=34